The Game
by Green Eyes3
Summary: Lyra realizes that Will is not gone as she might think, and that the angels have found a new way of passing between worlds...if they want to take the risk.
1. The Stranger

Chapter 1 The Stranger  
  
Lyra looked up from her books, feeling eyes on her. Standing in front of her was a tall, dark haired man wearing a gray anorak over a red t-shirt. She sighed, closed her books, and put them on the floor. This man was probably like the rest of them. The only people that came to see Lyra were men and women that needed to know something from her Alethiometer. She figured that this man was no different.  
  
"How may I help you today sir?" she asked in a very business-like way. The man shifted on his feet, looking uncomfortable. Lyra glanced him up and down quickly; she had never seen any of her customers look uncomfortable. His eyes were dark, and they were not quite looking at her. The shape of his face was familiar, though Lyra could have sworn that she had never seen him before. He had a muscular build, and his hands were in his pockets.  
  
"I.I." he spluttered. At last, he whispered, "Are you, perchance, Lyra Silvertongue?"  
  
Lyra looked up, startled. No one knew about her other, special last name except for herself and three other people. One of them was living in the Arctic, and two of them lived in another world all together. Her heart gave a pang when she thought about Will Parry. He was one of the ones who knew her last name. He was dark and handsome; or at least he had been on their last meeting, almost twelve years ago. She felt her eyes fill with sudden tears, and she looked away from the stranger, who reminded her so much of Will.  
  
"Yes," she said, though it was barely audible. "I am."  
  
The man nodded. His face relaxed as soon as she had said yes, and now he was looking directly at her out of his incredibly deep brown eyes. Their eyes met for a brief instant, then he nodded again, as if reminding himself that he was determined to do something. He held their gaze for a moment longer before he looked away. Without saying a word, he turned, his anorak slightly swirling behind him, and left the office. As the door opened, Lyra felt the rush of cold air from the outside, where it had begun to snow. Snowflakes whirled around the hustle and bustle outside, and covered everything with a swirling whiteness. Cars and roofs glistened with snow while carolers sang Christmas tunes. Lyra never really celebrated Christmas, and so hadn't realized that today was Christmas Eve. 'A day of wishes', that was what Mary had called it. But now, the snow reminded her of Iorek Byrinson, her friend that she had left in the Arctic, and left her wishing for him, and for so much else she had lost. Slowly, she picked up her books and put them back on the desk. Then, she stood up and hesitantly picked up the Alethiometer off of the side desk. She lay it down on her table, and unwrapped the velvet red covering. Just as she was unwrapping it, her dæmon, Pantalaimon, jumped down from the chandelier.  
  
'Do you think it was him Lyra?' Pantalaimon asked mentally.  
  
Lyra looked at the golden cat-like creature above her. "I don't think so," she answered uncertainly. "But I'd like to check. So I'm going to." Her dæmon sighed, and Lyra began to twist the dials around the Alethiometer.  
  
"Oh Pan, don't you remember when I could do this without books? When I could find out things so fast you were amazed? Remember?" she asked, almost frantically. Her dæmon nodded, and Lyra continued. She let her mind go into a kind of trance, and all that was in her consciousness was the Alethiometer. She asked the question by turning four dials in a certain order: 'Was that Will Parry that was in here today?' She then watched the Alethiometer's hands swing. At last, she figured out the answer.  
  
She stared at it for a moment, then grabbed one of her books, titled 'The Alethiometer and the Many Ways to Interpret it', and flipped to the back page. She ran her finger down the various columns. The answer was still the same. She shut the book with a snap, and grabbed her coat.  
  
"Come on Pan. We're going home."  
  
Pan saw her face, and realized that she didn't want to share what she had found out with the Alethiometer. So, without saying a word, he followed her. Outside, it had stopped snowing, and everything was still.  
  
  
  
  
  
Author's note:  
  
So sorry this was such a short chapter! The next one is going to be much longer, but I had to get this out here before I forgot (! *hugs*  
  
~*Green Eyes*~ 


	2. A Day of Wishes

Chapter Two: A Day of Wishes  
  
William Parry looked up at the sky, his eyes seeming to look into another world. The stars were just beginning to come up, twinkling above him, winking at him. To him, they were mocking him. It was Christmas Eve, a day he once knew as a happy day. But that all changed twelve years ago. He still remembered her face, was it so different now?  
  
Will put his head in his hands, feeling a prickling sensation behind his eyes. For once, he let the tears come. Why did the gateways have to be dangerous? Why couldn't the angels have found another way for him to see his beloved Lyra once more? He knew she must have changed; her face must be more grown up, she must be taller, more beautiful. If they ever did meet.if the angels ever found a way.would he even recognize her? The thought of being with her and not even knowing it pained him more than the old wound in his side.  
  
He turned then to his dæmon, sitting in his lap, watching him cry. As always, she knew how he felt, and felt for him. Kirjava's head was drooping, and her eyes were welling for the dæmon she knew so well- Pantalaimon. Will abruptly stood up, causing Kirjava to plummet to the ground. He wiped his eyes roughly with his hand, angry with himself that he could have been crying.  
  
Will then walked to the edge of the cliff, studying the stormy seas below. Was there only one way out of this mess? He had thought of suicide many times before, but never to this extent. He was actually thinking of jumping. Kirjava quickly jumped up onto his shoulder, whispering to him.  
  
"Will!" she gasped, sounding breathless. "Will, this is a terrible idea!"  
  
Will shook her off, staring down the cliff. "No, Kirjava, I think this might be the best idea I've ever had. I've thought about this so many times. It would stop my pain; stop me from thinking about Lyra. And then," his face grew radiant. "Then, my love and I will meet in the world of the dead, and then become part of nature.together! Oh Kirjava, what joy that would be! To be with my Lyra, forever!"  
  
Kirjava shook her head. "Will! This is no good! You have no choice in the order that you jump out! Unless Lyra just happens to die at the same time, there is no way you will go become part of nature together. I wish to see Pantalaimon as well, once again, but I will also be deprived of that wish if you do what you wish today."  
  
Will turned to her. "I.I suppose you are right," he said, his shoulders slumping. Kirjava drew a relieved breath. "I thought that killing myself would be an easy way out, but it would just hurt the people I love, not to mention myself."  
  
Kirjava nodded. Then, Will turned to the sky once more. "You know," he said, speaking more to himself and the stars rather than to Kirjava. "I once knew a woman, you might remember her, named Mary. She was smarter than any person I had ever met before, and she caught on to everything faster than the speed of light. She was truly an amazing woman. When Lyra and I were separated, she came with me, to teach me. I wanted to learn all about the way that the worlds were woven, the way that everything is really on top of everything else. And then." his voice faltered slightly. "One day, she simply disappeared. Exactly three years after Lyra left, on Christmas day, she was gone forever. But, before she left, she told me something about wishes. She told me." He closed his eyes and spoke straight from his heart. "She said, 'Will, you should know something. No matter where you are, or what world you are in, there are always going to be hopes and dreams. But none of these hopes or dreams will ever come true, until the person wishes. Wishes are the foundation of everything we know today, of everything that will ever come true. And one day, many years ago, I made a wish. I looked up into the starry sky and wished, with all my might, that I might one day learn how fate worked. Then, a few days later, a small girl named Lyra came into my life. I realized immediately what she was here to do. She was the answer to my unspoken prayer, my wish. I advise you, my boy, to remember that wishing is not a trivial thing, nor is it just for the weak. If you ever need anything, just remember that Christmas Eve is the day of wishes.'" Will sighed. "I did remember that. To this day, I have never used that special wish on anything. But now.now I want to."  
  
Will turned his face to the sky once more, and wished as hard as he could. 'I wish that Lyra and I will one day meet again, and that we will live in eternal love until the end of our days. Suddenly, there was a blinding flash of light, and Will fell to the ground, unconscious.  
  
At this exact moment, somewhere in a deserted world, the angel Ophilia found something remarkable.something inconceivable. She turned to her colleague, who was working along next to her.  
  
"What is it?" asked Bartok, giving her a searching look.  
  
"There's been an opening," she said, disbelievingly. "Another opening! And this time.there isn't a Specter on radar!" Both angels turned to look into the sky, where a rip had just appeared, where stars were now shining through.  
AN: Hi all! I'm so sorry about this being so late.my computer crashed with all of my chapters on it, so I just finished this one. Also, real life is getting a bit hectic! I promise I'll write more often now! ( *hugs* ~*Green Eyes*~ 


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